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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26746342">Apology owed</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Enide_Dear/pseuds/Enide_Dear'>Enide_Dear</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Just Friends, No pairing - Freeform</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 11:34:16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>889</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26746342</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Enide_Dear/pseuds/Enide_Dear</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Thranduil visits Bag End after the Battle of Five Armies. The Elf King and the Gentle Hobbit have something important to discuss.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Bilbo Baggins &amp; Thranduil</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>56</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Apology owed</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/Roselightfairy/gifts">Roselightfairy</a>.</li>



    </ul></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Bilbo Baggins had a lot of strange company after he returned from his 'adventure'; this was well known in all the Shire. Dwarves, and wizards and what not could be seen knocking on his door at the most disrespectable hour and were apparently warmly greeted by the otherwise more and more reclusive Mr Baggin. But dwarves were a fairly common sight in other parts of the Shire as well 8although it was unheard of for any other hobbit to invite them inside their house) and every hobbit knew about Gandalf, of course.</p>
<p>Those who arrived at dusk one warm summer evening were something else entirely. </p>
<p>They were as tall as Men but clearly no Men, that much was obvious from the light in their faces and the melody of their voices. They rode tall animals too, but what kind of animal not two hobbits that had seen them could agree on; some said elks, other deers while the once less prone to flights of fancy insisted it was just horses. Some children even said it was unicorns but no one really listened to them.  <br/>And that was the strangest of all with these strangers; even when you looked straight at them you seemed not to see them properly, as if there was a fog before your eyes or as if the twillight played tricks on your eyes. It was impossible to describe their faces or their hair or even their clothes.</p>
<p>Only on one thing could those who had seen them agree. The tallest one in the front wore an emerald necklace with grass-green jewels.</p>
<p>The strangers stopped at Bag End which was lit up as if Mad Old Baggins had been expecting the company, despite the postman insisting he'd delivered no significant letters there for weeks. Bilbo was seen in the door, bowing low and inviting the tallest stranger inside, very quickly. The others dispersed into the fields and little woods surrounding the house and was somehow not seen again all through the night. But it was said that the flowers grew brighter that summer than they ever had, and the orchards bore sweeter fruit and the corn was golden and rich. </p>
<p>Too bad about the spider infestation. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Elven King stood inside the hobbit hole, his crown of meadow flowers almost scraping the roof. He smiled. </p>
<p>"Elf friend," he said kindly. "It delights me to finally see you again and find you in good health and comfortable surroundings."</p>
<p>"At your service, King Thranduil." Bilbo bowed again and handed him a glass of his father's best wine - in a hobbit glass, but Thranduil took the little glass stem with as much delicacy as if it had been a flower. "And to the health of you and all your kin."</p>
<p>"And yours." The raised their glasses and drank. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Bilbo showed his guest to his finest room and his finest chair - not the kitchen were he usually entertained dwarves and wizards and hobbits. The chair was too small of course but then again everything in Thranduil's home had been too large for Bilbo. It evened out. </p>
<p>After some talk about the greater world (of which both knew very little) and the state of their own homelands (of which they both knew very much), a few more bottles of wine helped down with cheese and crackers and Bilbos prize winning tomatoes, they came to the heart of their meeting. </p>
<p>"I am so glad that you decided to accept my invitation, King Thranduil. i know you seldom leave your land unprotected for long."</p>
<p>Thranduil nodded seriously. </p>
<p>"It is so, but I believe you and I have unfinished business of a most serious kind. The time your friends spent in my dungeons still lay as a debt between us. Although I will not apologize to Thorin for my decision as he refused to give me any information about the quest, I still feel the need to apologize to you, Bilbo Baggins. It was wrong of me to imprison your friends. I am sorry."</p>
<p>Bilbo sat quiet for a little while before clearing his throat. </p>
<p>"When i first met Thorin and company, they barged into my house with little to no introduction or explanation, just before suppertime. They proceeded to eat all my food, drink most of my beer and cider, drag in dirt on my carpets. And smoke indoors! They also sang a very threatening song about smashing my plates, destroying my glassware and blunting my cutlery. Mind you, I was not as well off then as I am now. If the song had not turned out to be merely a song, I would have faced some very hard financial times." He set his jaw a little. "And I am not saying I regret that day, for it was the start of the most wonderful adventure of my life, but I do say that I know all about what an absolutely disastrous first impression dwarves make.  They require time and patience before they show their true selves and become the wonderful friends I now know they are. So I need no apology, King Thranduil. But I do need some advice."</p>
<p>"Oh? And what advice would that be, Elf friend?" Thranduil asked genuinely curious. </p>
<p>Bilbo looked up at him and smiled. </p>
<p>"Those dungeons of yours. How do I build similar ones in my basement?"</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks to Roselightfairy and Deheerkonijn at Tumblr for comming up with the idea for this fic!</p>
<p>A/N: One day I will learn how to write a fic without it turning silly but this is not that day!<br/>A/N2: The english word 'apologize' is completely impossible for me to write correctly on first try</p></blockquote></div></div>
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